European yacht broker MYSEA has announced the first sale of the AQUON One eco-catamaran – a solar electric yacht powered by the sun and hydrogen fuel cells with luxurious accommodations for eight to ten passengers without any emissions.
AQUON is a sustainability-focused yacht builder founded within Swiss Sustainable Yachts AG, based in Zurich. The company states it combines Swiss-quality engineering, Spanish naval architecture expertise, and Italian design to deliver a new breed of yachts that are connected, future-oriented, and most importantly – sustainable at sea.
The young company’s ethos begins with its first zero-emissions yacht, the solar hydrogen AQUON One. It is described by its design team on the AQUON website as follows:
A smart designer catamaran that redefines premium yachting. It offers an independent lifestyle for sustainable luxury, powered by green hydrogen and solar energy. The name AQUON symbolizes this state-of-the-art technology and references this powerful clean water luxury.
We’ve covered solar electric catamarans before, but the team at AQUON has developed a unique system aboard the vessel that can go days at sea without replenishing and may just be able to offer unlimited range without any dependency on fuel.
Solar electric hydrogen yachts could be the future at sea
With the first sale of the AQUON One, its makers look to set a new standard for eco-friendly luxury maritime vessels, and they may just do it. Unlike many of the yachts we’ve covered in the past that utilize solar panels to help power electric motors, AQUON has also added hydrogen fuel cells for additional clean power and long-term energy storage.
The yacht features 64 square-meters of photovoltaic solar panels on its roof that help charge lithium-ion batteries aboard that offer short-term electricity storage used for propulsion and onboard energy usage. Excess solar energy is then used to convert desalinated sea water into hydrogen gas. The gas is then compressed to 300 bar and stored in carbon tanks aboard.
Fuel cells convert the hydrogen back to electricity whenever energy is needed to propel two electric motors and provide additional energy to passengers aboard. The only emissions are pure water and thermal heat, which are used to provide hot water onboard and heat the cabins.
The result is a truly zero-emissions hydrogen electric yacht that can use its own terrain to create more fuel for itself, thus offering the prospect of unlimited range (while cruising at 4-6 knots with sufficient sunlight). Without replenishing, the AQUON One can still travel at sea for up to three days at a time.
When the yacht is not trying to conserve as much energy at sea, it can reach a cruising speed of 8 knots (9.2 mph) and a top speed of 16 knots (18.4 mph).
You can take a virtual tour of the AQUON One on the company website and also learn more. Here’s a video detailing the upcoming solar electric hydrogen yacht as well.